And a little update since I feel like I have given up writing since fall break. The semester is coming to an end way too quickly (finals start this Friday), and leaving couldn’t be more bittersweet. I am SO excited to come home to the USA and OKC, but I’m already missing Aix. Like most experiences, I have disappointments and things I would change if I could do it all over again, but I’ve also gained so much from being here and feel like I’ll be returning home, not a different person, but an improved one. Since being here, I’ve gained so much confidence and assurance in who I am as a person, and I no longer feel like I need to go out and prove anything to anyone other than myself. I feel like I’m also coming back to the states with a clearer idea of where I want my life to go, a lovely thing as I enter my final semester of college (yikes!).

I’ll be creating a wrap-up post to further reflect on my experience here, but I just wanted to give everyone a little update and let them know I’m still alive (and survived three more trips to Lisbon, Paris, and Lyon). So many more stories and photos to come once the stress of finals passes :).